Events and gatherings are being cancelled months in advance, across the world. The Coronavirus is wreaking havoc on our social norms and their cancellations are beginning to take their tolls on our mental health. One such event whose cancellation is collectively bumming out the entire North American enthusiast community is the 2020 Pebble Beach Concourse d’Elegance.

Last year, I was privileged enough to go to Pebble with BMW and it was easily one of the very best automotive experiences of my life. Admittedly, most established journalists have been to Pebble numerous times but I haven’t. Just the once. And it was everything I’d imagined it would be. Which is why I’m a bit sad that Pebble is cancelled this year, even though I understand why it’s cancelled and agree with said cancellation.

I wasn’t a lock to go back this year, so it’s not as if the cancellation is the only thing stopping me from going. However, I do know that at least a few enthusiasts were going to be going for the first time. Some enthusiasts, somewhere, had made plans to go this year, arranged everything ahead of time and were ready to go. Then Coronavirus happened.

That’s a huge bummer. The Pebble Beach Concourse d’Elegance is an absurdly opulent, incredibly jaded event but it’s one that enthusiasts around the country dream of going to. So the fact that those dreamers won’t be able to go this year actually makes me a bit sad because I can still feel the giddy excitement of my first time there.

There’s obviously always next year and there are obviously more important things going on than rich people trying to out-rich-people other rich people. Still, it’s a bit of a bummer that one of the most exciting and interesting events of the year is cancelled. At least this gives me another year to save to get there…